A document leaked this week suggests the Trump administration is gearing up to sue over the use of race-based admissions for student enrollment, which could put the University of Texas’ policies at risk once again.

TheNew York Times reported Tuesday that the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division was seeking lawyers to investigate and possibly sue over “intentional race-based discrimination in colleges and university admissions.”

“The posting sought volunteers to investigate one administrative complaint filed by a coalition of 64 Asian-American associations in May 2015 that the prior administration left unresolved,” she said. “The complaint alleges racial discrimination against Asian-Americans in a university’s admissions policy and practices. This Department of Justice has not received or issued any directive, memorandum, initiative, or policy related to university admissions in general. The Department of Justice is committed to protecting all Americans from all forms of illegal race-based discrimination.”

A group called the Asian American Coalition for Education filed a complaint against Harvard University in 2015, alleging students were discriminated against in the admissions process. The coalition’s complaints echoed that of an ongoing lawsuit filed against Harvard by the Students for Fair Admissions.

The Virginia-based Students for Fair Admissions also filed a lawsuit this summer to challenge UT’s race-based admissions policy.

Thomas Saenz, president and general counsel of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, worries that the Justice Department’s move means its ultimate goal is to eliminate affirmative action. He noted that many involved in the coalition’s complaint have been connected to anti-affirmative action groups.

“It is disappointing if this administration is going to take a position against affirmative action policies,” he said. “Frankly, it would be a failure to embrace access to equal opportunity to education and would echo what we saw in the campaign, which is a hostility toward Latinos.”

Latinos make up the majority of students in Texas’ public schools but are underrepresented at many colleges, including UT. Such policies help make up for unequal access to educational opportunities in kindergarten through high school, Saenz said.

Representatives from the Asian American Coalition for Education could not be reached late Wednesday.

The coalition’s website seeks Asian American students who have been discriminated against to file complaints. The group alleges that Ivy League universities have maintained a “triple standard,” setting the bar highest for Asian students to gain admission, with white students needing to meet a separate standard and other races a standard lower than that.

The report on the Justice Department’s action comes just days after UT officials responded to the Students for Fair Admissions suit. They said Wednesday that they will closely review any directives that come out of the Justice Department.

Earlier this week, UT President Gregory Fenves said the university stands by its policy.

“The university believes in and will defend our admissions process, which has not changed since the ruling,” he said in a statement.

Officials would not speculate Wednesday whether the university — one of a handful in Texas to use race as a consideration — would be at risk of legal action from the Trump administration.

In a court filing Monday, UT noted that the Students for Fair Admissions officers include former plaintiff Abigail Fisher and Edward Blum, a businessman and attorney who supported Fisher’s nearly eight-year legal battle after she was denied admission to the school.

“They cannot accept that each court in their prior litigation ruled against them and determined that UT may lawfully consider race as one of many factors — a ‘factor of a factor of a factor’ ... in seeking to foster a diverse student body, which benefits the education of all students,” according to the filing.

UT has repeatedly defended its policies using race as a factor. Most notably, the university lost a key battle in federal courts in 1996, which led to Texas public institutions abandoning affirmative action.

UT resumed using race as a limited factor for admissions in 2004 after a key ruling from the Supreme Court. The school then won two challenges from Fisher in the Supreme Court. Many Asian-American advocacy groups have filed briefs in support of UT’s policy.

The Students for Fair Admissions lawsuit against UT claims its admission policy violates the equal protection guaranteed in the Texas Constitution, an argument used in previous challenges. Representatives from the group could not be reached for comment.

The suit alleges that using race to admit students who are historically underrepresented on the campus is discrimination.

“Given the limited number of places in UT-Austin’s freshman class, granting a racial preference to African-American and Hispanic applicants diminishes the chances of admissions for white and Asian applicants,” according to the lawsuit filing.

The state’s automatic admissions provision, as well as other efforts, has helped diversify the student enrollment at UT. But comparing the university’s enrollment with Texas public school enrollment shows Hispanic and black students remain underrepresented, while Asian and white students are over-represented.